Vandread Fanfic - Slayer of God: Beyond the Time

Rating – Sci-Fi and a little romance here and there

Best viewed with the font Verdana, 10 point

Notes:
Sorry for the long wait and thanx to Ryu Gunslinger and Kaiser Phoenix for your constant comments. This had made me want to see this story to the end. Yes, I'm considering to give up on this story but thanks to you guys, I have a reason not to. Anyways, enjoy this chapter.

Chapter 5: Love and Pain

In the moment the frozen memories awaken
We begin to wish for the future
Until the day I see the dream
I will catch with both hands
I won't let go or give up
I want to keep believing

Dreams by ROmantic Mode

"Dammit! Just give up already!" Erick shouts as he decimated another line of enemy fighters.

"Well, this is where they gated out from. Technically, they won't give up." Anton replied.

"Where's Hibiki? What is he doing?" Erick shot back.

"He's preoccupied at the moment."

"Dammit. Mara, Janette. Take out the enemies on both flanks and find a way through the dimension gate if possible."

"Yes sir!"

Hibiki and Dita reeled under the impact of their opponent, a biological red monster which was also a main threat to Nirvana and its crew.

"We can't go on like this!" Hibiki said.

Dita, who was sitting in front of him, held his hands on the controls.

"Don't worry. Everything will be alright."

"Dita..."

"After all, we survived many battles harder than this. There's no reason for us to fail, right?"

"Battles..."

Hibiki closed his eyes as he remembers their struggles against many opponents. The invading Earth fleet and the titanic battle against Deus. Feeling refreshed and focused, he opened his eyes and kissed his wife lightly.

"You're right. There's no reason for us to lose."

Suddenly, Erick interrupted.

"Kid, we really need your Vandread right about now."

"Be there soon." he replied.

Erick looked around his cockpit to assess the situation.

"Make that sooner."

"Right."

"Hear my advice; KICK-HIS-ARSE."

The couple smiled.

"Will do."

"Yeah. We'll be there as soon as possible."

On the bridge of Nirvana, everyone were watching the battle anxiously. Rick too, was nervous about it. But upon seeing Erick took command after Hibiki was isolated by the unleashed monster, he knew everything will be fine.

"Go get em, guys. I believe in all of you..."

The door slid open and Meia entered.

"Rick, how's Axel? How's everyone?"

Rick pulled her close and smiled assuringly.

"Don't worry. They're doing fine. How things at the infirmary?"

"No casualties so far and Duero is doing his best and if it isn't because of Hotaru, things will probably go out of hand."

"I see..."

"At least there's no casualties." Barnette said as she entered the area.

"Barnette, how is Gascogne doing?" BC asked.

"Everything is going smoothly even though this is our third battle in as many days."

BC smiled.

"Good to hear that. Now, we only have to wait for Hibiki and Dita to open the way."

Vandread Dita slipped through its opponents attacks and attacked all its weak spots with its double-edged sword.

"Haha. Got you!" Hibiki exclaimed.

"Not yet. Look." Dita pointed at the monster. It was regenerating itself.

"Darn it. Looks like we have to attack it relentlessly."

Through the reflection on the glass, Hibiki saw Dita smiling at him.

"Let's do it, Hibiki."

Hibiki put his hands over hers and smiled back at her.

"Yeah. Let's."

"Dammit. They just keep coming!" Erick shouted.

"Dad, stop whining and help me out here!" Mara said.

Erick sighed.

"Fine, fine. I'll be right there. Get out of my way, maggots!"

With that, Erick sped towards Mara, crushing any of the enemy's celestial fighters. Anton, who was in command of another unit said;

"We can't go on like this. Axel, how things on your side?"

"Not good. It seems that they have an infinite amount of battalions." Axel replied.

"The same thing goes on here. And to make matters worse, I've been chased around by a dozen of them." Jura whined as she avoided numerous attacks from her pursuers.

"Understood. I'll come over and help you out. Axel, you're in charge." Anton said.

"Hey, hey. Are you sure? I'm just a rookie." asked Axel, who was still surprised at the sudden appointment.

"Don't worry. It won't be long. You just need to hold up the formation until I get back."

"This will take forever..." Hibiki remarked as the Vandread attacked the monster relentlessly only for it to regenerate after the beating.

"We're almost there, Hibiki. Look, it's regenerating slowly now. Not as fast as before." Dita informed.

"Yeah. I can see that. Let's get this over and help the others."

"Yeah. Let's do it."

"Don't stray too far from the defense line. We need to hold on. At least until Anton returns." Axel said to his comrades.

"Gotcha."

"Don't worry, kid. We know what to do."

Suddenly, a female voice echoed from the distress line.

"I've been pursued. Requesting help."

Axel recognized the voice instantly.

"Janette, hold on. I'll be there."

"Please hurry. I don't know how long..."

The line was suddenly cut off by an explosion. Axel, fearing the worst, checked for Jannete's Dread signal. To his relief, the Dread suffered minimal damage and Janette was still alive. But he didn't have much time. Her pursuers might attempt to finish her off.

"Can you guys take it from here?" Axel asked to one of his comrade.

"Yeah. We can take it from here. No worries. Go and save the damsel in distress."

Axel nodded.

"I'm counting on all of you."

With that, Axel went to Janette's position as fast as he could muster.

Barnette almost screamed when she saw Janette was shot but Meia managed to calm her down.

"It's alright, Barnette. She'll be fine."

"Janette..."

Then, a blurry image of Janette appeared on the screen. It's vague but her mother knew she was injured.

"Everyone...I'm...okay...the communication circuit was damaged...I..."

The connection broke off and Axel appeared.

"Don't worry. She'll be fine. I'll escort her back to the ship. Please notify the medical staff to get ready."

BC nods.

"Roger that."

Upon hearing that Janette was injured, Erick couldn't contain his anger as he took down many of them than the usual.

"Alien bastards. No one hurts my daughter. AND I MEAN NO ONE!"

He alone virtually cleared the battlefield and it's all left to Hibiki and Dita to finish off their adversary.

"Dita, we're almost there." Hibiki said.

His wife nods. Hibiki signaled Nirvana.

"Bart, fire the main gun. I don't wanna see the darn thing ever again."

"Wipe 'em out? Sure. Count on me!"

Janette doesn't remember for how long she has been unconscious. The last thing she remember was the explosion on her Dread controls and Axel's voice reaching out to her. She slowly opened her eyes as lights flooding her sight.

"Uh..."

"Janette?"

She turned to the source of the voice. Barnette was sitting beside the bed she was on.

"Mom...I'm...okay..."

Barnette spontaneously hugged her.

"I'm glad, dear. You have us worried for days."

"Umm...how long have I been here?"

"Three days." Erick, who was standing behind Barnette, interjected.

"Dad, am I...gonna be okay?"

"Hey, you just said you're okay yourself. If it wasn't because of Hotaru, you will probably go into a coma. That explosion must have been really bad."

"Hotaru...Miss Inaho?"

Barnette nods.

"That's right. I don't know how, but she healed most of the physical wounds."

"I...see...but what about the dimension gate?"

"The security code to unlock the gate is pretty complex. Parfet and Karu-chan are doing their best to decipher it."

Janette didn't respond. Erick leaned towards her and smiled mischievously.

"Hehehe. You know, Axel came by here a lot ever since you've been here."

Blushing madly, Janette threw a pillow at her father.

"DAD!"

The pillow hit Erick in the face but he still smiling.

"Ahahaha. Alright, my bad. Glad to see my little angel back to her old self."

"Erick, you've been mean to her." Barnette complained.

"Hey, I'm like this all the time, right? Anyways, we've gotta run."

"Eh, already?"

"Let her have some rest, honey. We'll come by again, okay?"

With that, Erick dragged his wife out of the ward with the latter started to protest.

"Erick, don't pull me!"

Janette smiled at her parent's antiques. She's already 18 and their relationship is still the same as she remembered since the day she was born.

(I'm lucky to have them as my parents. I wish that someday, I'll be able to have that kind of relationship...)

Moments later, Axel entered the room with a bouquet of flowers.

"Janette, you're awake. How are you doing?"

"I'm feeling great. Thanks for asking."

Axel hands the bouquet to her.

"Uh, thought I should bring something for you..."

Janette accepts the gift and took a closer look.

"Oh, blue roses?"

"I'm...not sure of your favorite color, so I just..."

"I like it."

"What? I mean, really?"

She nods.

"I really like it but..."

"But..?"

She smiled.

"I prefer red."

Axel smiled back at her.

"Heh. I see. I'll keep that in mind."

Mara was outside the ward listening to their laughter, with a pain that only she could bear. Small tears ran down her cheeks as she tried to hide the pain.

"Hm? Is that you, Mara?"

Mara turned around and saw Meia. She quickly wiped off the tears.

"Aunt Meia, what are you doing here?"

"Just thought that I should pay your sister a visit."

"Uncle Rick is not coming?"

Meia sulks upon hearing that name.

"That jerk is too busy tuning up Axel's Vanguard. Too busy that he don't have the time for me."

Mara flashed a smile.

"Mara?"

"Aunt Meia, could you...listen to what I'll be saying for a while?"

At the park, Meia sat beside Mara, waiting for her to talk.

"Aunt Meia, please don't tell this to anyone. Especially Axel."

Meia nods.

"I...like Axel. A lot. Ever since we were kids. The same goes to Janette. She too, like Axel. I just thought that this feeling will eventually fade away as time passes but I was wrong. This pain grips my heart everytime my thoughts goes to him. And seeing that my sister is having the same feeling, I decided to help her out, hoping to ward off this feeling inside. But again, I failed. Now I don't know what I should do..."

Meia looked at her sadly as Mara wiped off the tears. She then hugged the younger lady.

"Aunt Meia?"

"Mara. You're strong. And I don't blame you for loving my son. But I can't say that you did the right thing in helping Janette and Axel to be together."

"I was wrong all this time. I knew it."

"No. I don't say you're doing anything wrong. It's hard to explain but I think you did it because you love your sister, right? You don't want her to suffer, right?"

Those words struck Mara as she realized why.

"Yes, you're right. All I did was for Janette. I..."

"Let it go, Mara. Let all your sadness go. I'll be here."

Mara started to cry as the area was filled with sorrow and sadness. Meia stroked her hair softly.

(Such a poor child. She's been holding out her feelings for such a long time. All for her sister's sake.)

Axel and Janette were having a light conversation in the ward.

"When will we get to use the warp gate?" Janette enquired.

"Tomorrow, most likely."

"I see. Everything beyond that thing is likely to be hostile."

Axel didn't say a thing. Instead, he looked away from her. His fist was shaking as tears ran down his face.

"Axel..?"

"I...I hate myself. If I know what will happen to you, I would...protect you..."

Janette shook her head.

"It's alright. Everything is fine now."

"But I still couldn't forgive myself..."

Janette held his hands and placed them upon her chest. Axel stared at her in astonishment.

"Hey..."

"Don't worry. It's alright. Knowing that you care so much is enough for me."

Axel silently nods. He then held her hands.

"I promise. I'll always be there for you, protecting you. No matter what."

Blushing deeply, Janette could only smile.

"Axel..."

In the training room, Bart was doing his martial arts training he learnt many years back. Four punches, two kicks, one backflip. Then, he jumped high in the air followed by another series of punches and kicks. As his feet touched the floor, he heard a clap. He instantly recognized Jura, wearing a black jumpsuit and holding a katana.

"What's that clap for?"

"It's a compliment."

"Hah. Whatever it is, my fists are still no match for your blade."

Jura smiled as she unsheathed her weapon.

"Wanna make sure of it?"

"Faye, how old are you?"

"Eleven!"

"Then why do I have to carry you on my shoulders?"

Rick looked up on the smiling face of his granddaughter.

"Because you're strong!" she answered happily.

"And who told you that?"

"Mommy, of course."

Rick scratched his head as he sighed.

"That no good daughter of mine..."

"Grandpa, let's play when we reached the park, okay?"

"Oh no. Anything but that. Please..."

"And mommy wants me to sleep with you and grandma."

Rick widened his eyes.

"WHAAAT?"

Faye nods.

"Mommy said she needs some time alone with daddy."

"Great. Just...great..." he muttered.

"Hey, Rick. Where are you going?"

Rick looked ahead and saw the couple of Hibiki and Dita. He then sighed and pointed upwards at Faye.

"To the park. I was assigned to be her slave."

"So I see."

Dita approached Faye and pats her head.

"Faye-chan. How about you playing with me tomorrow?"

"Eh? Will it be fun?"

Dita nods.

"Of course. Uncle Hibiki will come along too."

"Oi, oi. Who says I'm gonna..."

Hibiki couldn't finish his sentence when Dita glaring 'daggers of death' at him. This forced him to rephrase his reply.

"I mean, yeah. I suppose..."

Faye smiled.

"Em! Okay! It will be so much fun!"

The sparring session has ended with neither side were able to get the win.

"Let's...stop here..." Bart gasped as he examined the cuts on both his hands.

Jura, who was using her katana to maintain balance nods. She wiped the blood from the edge of her mouth.

"Yeah. You really not holding back, don't you?"

"How am I suppose to do that when you're attacking me like a demon possessed?" Bart retorted.

"Hehehe. Sorry about that."

"Nevermind that. Let's do something about these injuries, okay?"

The blonde woman nods.

"Sure. Let's go to the infirmary."

Mara wiped the remains of her tears away after she done letting it all out. Meia put her hand on her shoulder.

"Feeling better?"

"Yeah. Thanks, aunt Meia. Please keep this a secret."

"Don't worry. I promise."

Then, the silent was broke by someone's moaning followed by a cheerful laughter.

"Hey, your hands. They're blocking my view."

"Hehehehe. I wanna see how you walk blind-folded."

"Oi, this is no laughing matter..."

Meia smiled warmly as she recognized the voices of Rick and Faye.

"Eh? Grandma and Auntie Mara?"

Mara shook her fist at Faye.

"That's sister to you, little girl."

Rick struggled to put Faye's hands away from his view.

"Lemme see, will ya?"

"Here. Let me help."

Meia lifted Faye off his shoulders and put her on the ground. The little girl then hugged her.

"Grandma, let's play together!"

"Hm? Still not enough fun with your grandpa?"

"Nope!" She gave an instant reply.

Mara slowly walked away from th three of them.

"Um. I...have to go. If you'll excuse me..."

"Oh, see you later." Meia said.

With that, Mara left. Meia stared at her sadly.

(Mara...)

"What's wrong, Meia? You look like you almost gonna burst."

Meia rubbed her eyes upon Rick's remark.

"No. I'm okay."

"If you have anything, just tell me, okay? Don't force it all on yourself."

Meia held his hand and smiled.

"I know."

"Ne, ne. What are we gonna play?" Faye suddenly interrupted.

"Hmm...how about 'You're it'? The one who touched by the chaser will be one." Meia suggested.

"And who do you supposed to be 'it'?" Rick quizzed.

Meia smiled at him as she slightly touched Rick by the nose.

"You. Come on, Faye. Let's run before he gets to us!"

Faye nods happily.

"Em! Grandpa, YOU'RE IT!"

Rick then points at Meia.

"I won't forget this! You're NEXT!"

Meia sticks her tongue at him.

"Come and get me, pretty boy." she taunted.

"Oh, you're so gonna get it. Here I go!"

With that, Rick gave chase to both of them.

Didn't know what I was living for, I couldn't take it
I stood there with nothing I could believe
My life was just a mystery
I hid my heart and soul way up in my sleeve...

Trust You Forever, G Gundam 2nd OP theme